Always
by Yujianlong
Summary: "Ace, you're alive!... Why do you have boobs?" - Ace survives the events in Marine Fort, thanks to Trafalgar Law. The only issue is that our favoire fire fist somehow turned into a woman. What will the crew say? fem!Ace/Marco. 'M' for later chapters.
1. The most Formidable Shock of His Life

And here we go again!

**Fist the standard warning list:**

fem!Ace/Marco. AU, of course. Post Marine Fort Arc, though Ace will survive the whole story.

The constant confusion between Ace's/ Anne's name is intended. You'll understand sooner or later.

**Disclaimer: **All Oda's. Though he would have called fem!Ace _Ann_. I prefer Anne, because it's just more common than Ann.

And now Enjoy!

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><p>In the end, no one could really remember how they got out of Marine Fort. It had been one big chaos of running and retreating, of taking care of the wounded and wrapping blankets around the dead. Shanks had helped them a lot by ending the war. For Oyaji, though, it had been too late.<p>

Marco sat on a cliff and stared over to the yellow submarine, in which the rookie Trafalgar Law was trying to somehow save Ace from certain death. The commander of Whitebeard's first division had been pacing up and down in front of the ship before, but then Vista had barked at him to (and this was a quote) _fucking__ sit __down __already _because he was _making __everybody __even __more __freaking__ nervous __than __they __already __were._

When the rookie stepped out of the inner rooms of his ship, he was wiping clean one of his surgery utensils. Marco stared at him intensely, waiting for whatever the young pirate was up to say. There was no way the phoenix would be able to cope with it if Ace was dead. The young man was his nakama, his brother and one of his best friends.

After Blackbeard had killed Thatch and Ace had left to hunt for the traitor, the Moby Dick had become unbearably quiet. Though Vista and Haruta had tried their best to cheer the crew up from time to time, it was just not the same without the two commanders.

The mere thought of truly loosing Ace now – after all they had gone through to save him! – made Marco shiver. He continued to watch Law calmly clean his tool. It let him hope. If he had bad news, he would have told them strait away, right?

Trafalgar Law stepped over to Marco, naturally accepting the first division commander as the new leader of the Whitebeard pirates. The rookie sighed heavily and looked down on the blond man. "He will survive it. It'll take him some time to fully recover, but I guess that was to be expected… He's awake, if you want to see him." Marco nodded and immediately stood up. When starting to walk over to the submarine, Law held him back.

"There's something strange with your… brother. Don't blame it on me if you don't like it, 'kay." Another nod and Marco jumped onto the yellow ship. Stepping into the inner rooms, the phoenix softly called Ace's name. A low voice led him into a dimly illuminated room with two beds.

In one lay the rubber boy, still unconscious. In the other, partially hidden in the shadows, half sitting, half lying was Ace. The blanket had slid down and now barely covered the fireboy's crotch. Marco frowned. Had the younger man always had such a _curvy_ hip? The phoenix's let his gaze wander higher.

His eyes went wide and a short gasp escaped his lips. He heard Ace chuckle, the voice higher than Marco was used to. He moved a little closer, trying _not_ to stare at Ace's naked torso. "I know… I was pretty shocked myself." Ace's voice sounded. Still too fucking high, Marco thought. "I fear I'll have to adjust my name. Ace doesn't sound very female, right?" God knew how Ace managed to keep his cheery self up…

The first division commander had seen a lot. He was used to a lot. He had seen his captain and chosen father die only hours ago and somehow managed to stay relatively calm. Hell, Marco had even managed to keep his crew somewhat organized after the war. But now, right here, right beside Ace's bed, he got panic.

Grabbing for the bed, the phoenix tried to steady himself but failed miserably. Just before he completely lost his balance and made a very un-marco-like acquaintance with the floor, a slender hand grabbed his arm and dragged him onto the bed. The blond held out an arm to support his weight so he would not land on the still injured pirate lying there.

The broad grin in Ace's face was still the same as always. So were the freckles. The rest was _different_. The Mera Mera no Mi user's features were softer; the lips had become full and got a darker red shade than before. Ace looked at Marco with a mischievous gleam in the big brown eyes. "Mind lending me your shirt? You know I usually don't wear any so..."

Blushing slightly, Marco snapped out of his shock state and handed the shirt over. Looking away immediately, he patiently waited until he was sure that the raven-haired pirate had properly covered his bare chest. Then Marco met Ace's gaze, an almost invisible blush still covering his cheeks. He let his gaze wander quickly over Ace's body, noticing how surprisingly well his shirt snuggled around Ace's new curves. When he realized that he had started staring, he forced himself to meet the other's eyes again. Out of the sudden, the younger commander's look changed.

"Marco..? Hey, stop staring at me like that. It's not like I did this on purpose, okay?" Ace's voice trembled. The usually so self-confident pirate was now looking at Marco with an almost pleading look. The phoenix swallowed hard. It almost felt as if Ace was looking for acceptance – once again. But god, since when did this touch him _so_ much?

The blond pirate sighed and then smiled at the younger commander. "Well, I guess we really need to choose a name for you, yoi?" Ace looked down on his hands and murmured something incomprehensible. Marco looked at him questioningly. "My _father_ had told my mother two names. One was Ace."

"And the other?" he asked bluntly. The phoenix wanted to know, really did but he had to be careful. If he pushed too much, the boy wouldn't continue. He was already surprised that Ace talked about Roger at all, especially after what happened in Marine Fort. "He said to Rouge, if their child would be a girl, she should call her Anne. Gol D. Anne…" Ace's voice was only a mere whisper. Looking so unsure of himself, Marco's heart ached by the mere sight of it.

Ace felt as if he was back on square one again. He felt as if his whole personality had been burned away by Akainu's attack and left only a pile of ash. The commander of the second division - Whitebeard's son – didn't exist anymore. From Law he knew that his tattoo, too, had been burned. A mark that should have lasted all his life - gone. The person that had been _Ace,_ didn't exist anymore… Not for him. All that had made him the person he was was gone. Sabo, his tattoo, his father.

He had grown to be a person that he could look at in the mirror. But now he didn't even _look_ the same anymore! Everyone knew about his bloodline now. He was branded as Gol D. Roger's son and would never get rid of this ever again. The Marine had made it clear that all that he had done as a pirate was worth nothing compared to the crime of being the Pirate King's son. All those years he had tried to become someone else than Roger's son – wasted. "Who am I..?" he whispered. Would his nakama even accept him as part of their crew? It was his fault that Whitebeard was dead. He had killed his father…

"You are my brother and my friend." The soft voice woke the other pirate from his dark thoughts. "Welcome back in the family, Gol D. Anne." The blond carefully placed a hand on Ace's shoulder. A small smile tugged at Marco's lips when he saw the others unbelieving look. "You're still our nakama, your name or inheritance doesn't change this."

When Ace realized that Marco was really serious about this, that he was accepting him even with his bloodline, with all he had done and even with his sudden new appearance, he couldn't hold back the tears. Hiding his face in a fare too fragile hand, he silently sobbed. "Thanks" he whispered.

Marco only shook his head at this, still smiling. He took the crying Ace in a soft embrace, rubbing the younger pirate's back. While Ace slowly calmed down and finally fell asleep, the fist division commander stared out of the window.

Ace's body was warm against his chest; the fragile body of a woman. Sure, Ace would still be as tough as hell, but Marco was looking down at the other commander worried. The marine would be a fucking pain in the neck as soon as they would discover that Ace had survived. They had believed him to be dead (or as good as); otherwise they would never have accepted to hand his body back to the Whitebeard pirates. And god knows why, Marco suddenly felt an even stronger need to protect him. He was his younger brother still and he would always protect him.

But having Ace in a woman's body woke an ancient instinct in the commander - the instinct to protect her at all costs. Unconsciously he ran his fingers through the raven black hair. Marco looked down on Ace, his smile turning into a mask of pained realization. Someone would need to go and buy cloth with Ace. And hell, he already knew exactly whom the crew was going to choose for that job.

Sighing, Marco lay Ace down on the bed, looking down at the sleeping pirate. The fabric of his purple shirt was wrapped tightly around Ace shoulder and the phoenix knew exactly that he would have to come up with a reasonable explanation why he was lacking a shirt. He would at least try to keep Ace's secret for a while otherwise the other commanders would show up at his bedside only to see some curves! Being a pirate had certain disadvantages...

With a last affectionate glance to his friend, he walked out of the room.

The other commanders had apparently heard that Ace was awake and now all stood or sat by the yellow submarine, waiting. So much to his brilliant plan to _not_spread the news about Anne. Marco sighed heavily and approached Jozu and Vista, the commanders standing closest to him. "Listen guys, there's something we need to discuss. Before I don't get a proper advice, no one will go to Ace." The two men gave him a puzzled look, but started to walk away from the group.

"And you," Marco said to the crowd of pirates: "Ace is sleeping. He still needs rest. So do me a favor and _don__'__t_ disturb him, yoi."

The commanders stared at him confused and watched him walk away. The phoenix gave Law a nod. He was convinced the rookie would make sure that Ace would get his rest.

A few meters away from the main crowd, Jozu and Vista waited for their new leader. It wasn't yet officially agreed that Marco would take over the position but to be fair, there was no other option. No one except the current first division commander was actually capable to keep the crew together.

The phoenix casually walked over to them. Sitting down on a stone, Marco sighed heavily, burying his face in his hand. His whole appearance slumped. Vista raised an eyebrow. "What's up?"

The blond looked up and decided to just get it over with. "Portgas D. Ace is kind of… no longer part of the crew." Raising a hand to stop their protest, the commander continued: "For reasons we have not yet discovered, he is not even male anymore." Even Marco's raised hand wasn't enough to keep the two men quite anymore. Or well, Vista wasn't able to keep his mouth shut anymore. "So what you're trying to tell us is that we have now a _woman_ as second division commander?" The phoenix merely nodded.

There was a heavy silence, finally broken by Jozu: "And what's… _her_ name?" The blond had to admit he was surprised. Jozu was usually a very quite person that hardly ever said a word. Though Marco had to admit, this really was the only question that he could have asked without causing a huge and rather pointless discussion. "We settled for Gol D. Anne."

The phoenix hadn't believed that the two commanders could look more shocked than they did before. But they did. Jozu's usually motionless expression had changed to one of utter disbelieve. Vista was at a loss of words, which was about was unusual as Jozu showing emotion. Marco smiled. It didn't really surprise that they were a little out of it. After all that had happened choosing Roger's name was quite unusual. Though on the other hand, it fit Anne's situation pretty well.

"Oh and Vista, someone will need to go shopping with her. I want my shirt back, yoi." This was enough to crack the tensed situation as the fifth division commander made it _very_ clear that this job was going to stay with Marco. The blond smirked humorlessly. As if he hadn't seen this coming.

"And now where do you need our advice?" asked Vista with a grin. The first division commander sighed heavily. "I have no clue how to break the news to the crew. Besides we need to finally find replacement for Thatch. And no matter which commander will take over the lead of the crew, he will leave another gap!" The other men nodded.

Jozu completely ignored the first of Marco's problems and only made a comment on the more pressing issues. "So we need commanders for fist and forth division." The phoenix head snapped up and he stared at the other commander in disbelieve. "Who said I'm gonna take over Oyaji's position?"

"Seriously, who else would be able to? You're the only one that is able to hold the crew together. Beside, you've been leading it mostly on your own. Oyaji was just sitting there and enjoyed the show." Jozu replied and didn't sound the slightest bit unsure. And suddenly Marco found himself overwhelmed by the trust his brothers put in him. A small smile crossed his features. "Thanks, I guess."

"I think we'll have to go down to fifteen divisions. We just lost too many men. And like this, we will only need to find one more commander." Vista added. A pained expression appeared on his face when he talked about their lost nakamas. In a fair world, they would get the time to mourn properly. But in this world of _absolute__justice_, there was no place for mourning pirates.

Marco thought about the idea and silently agreed with it. They had lost so many; they had to restructure the crew. Taking a deep breath, the phoenix decided to share an idea that had only just come to his mind a few minutes ago. "What would you say if we gave the first division to Anne?"

"Well… We'd have to ask the other commanders first, but I guess the idea is not too bad." Jozu said. "And he would be close to you, which will help guarantee his safety." Marco nodded. The commanders would have to vote, but he thought it should be working.

The three of them fell silent again, each musing over their own sorrows and pains. Marco felt his composure falter. So many things had happened. So many dead. The immense trust his fellow commanders put in him and the pain over the loss of his nakama where overwhelming him, undermining his ever calm personality. Tears burnt at the corner of his eyes.

Before the first tear run down his cheeks, the silence was interrupted by a high-pitched scream. "Ace! You're alive!"

Then, and this let Marco flinch: "Why do you have boobs?"

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><p>I know, Ace is rather emotional in this one. But just think about one thing... women are used to the hormones running through their blood and can (usually) control them quite well.<p>

Ace isn't used to it.

And waking up and discover that you are female (in addition to all that happened in Marine Fort) is a little too much even for a freaking tough person like Ace.

I'll upload this story once a week, usually Sunday midnight CET.

Wednesday I'll start uploading a Kid/Law story, also on a weekly basis.

Read and Review please - thanks!


	2. Anne Goes Shopping

And here comes the second chapter!

And yes, Anne goes shopping.

I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Mainly because I could torture my poor Marco a little XDD

I know, I'm evil. But seriously, after a few comments, he deserved it. He so deserved it!

**Disclaimer: **Oda owns them all, still.

**Only warning I'll repeat: **The constant confusion between Anne and Ace is fully intendet.

Enjoy!

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><p><strong>The<strong> commanders' heads snapped over to Marco, who was still sitting with Jozu and Vista. The phoenix sighed heavily. The rubber boy had successfully taken over the task of spreading the news.

Marco shook his head in exhaustion. He needed sleep. The war had eaten up most of his energy and then the shock of Oyaji's death, the worry about Ace's life and then Anne..! And of course he was currently in charge of the whole crew. He had to protect and lead them. The phoenix felt the weight of his responsibility heavy on his shoulders.

Haruta was the first of the commanders finding his voice again. "Is there something we need to know, commander?" A devilish grin spread on the other pirates face and Marco knew very well that he was not going to get out of this easily. After Ace and Thatch, Haruta was the commander up for causing most trouble.

**B**efore Marco could answer, though, a voice from the submarine let the commanders' attention shift. "HEY! You're not supposed to get up, you stupid woman!"

Despite the rather awful situation, Marco smirked. "Seems like our dear Anne is not so different from Ace, yoi." With these words he stood up and walked back over to the yellow ship. The moment he arrived, a tall and feminine figure stepped out of the inner rooms.

Anne had knotted the ends of Marco's shirt together to prevent it from hanging loosely around her body. Ace's black pants were far too big for Anne's fragile form, but with the orange belt wounded tightly around her hips, it seemed to work out quite ok.

Anne grinned at the other commanders, the trademark grin they all knew from Ace. And even though he shouldn't, Marco couldn't help but stare at his nakama in awe. Dear god, Anne was one smoking hot woman. And Ace's broad, cocky grin made her look just adorable. Hearing the catcalls from behind, the phoenix snapped back to reality and forced himself to remember that this was his younger _brother_. Jozu hit the idiot that just couldn't shut up hard over the head, sending the other commander flying against the next tree. "Fuck, Jozu! That was unfair…"

Marco decided to ignore the bickering and returned his attention to Anne. "As far as I'm informed, you should be laying in your bed. Mind explaining me why your not, commander _Anne_?" Putting the stress on Ace's new name, Marco looked up to Anne. The woman turned her head around to face the phoenix. A small smile tugged at her red lips. "I got bored. And after I figured out how to properly wear this, I thought I can show myself to public."

The first division commander smirked and waited for her to jump over and join them. Then he noticed that Anne hesitated. Between the submarine and the coast was a small gap. A distance Anne usually should have been able to jump over easily. But of course, Anne was still wounded. Marco jumped onto the boat to help her the same moment Law stepped out of the submarine's inner rooms together with the rubber boy.

Luffy let his eyes wander over Ace and grinned. "Looks like Nami's trick worked pretty well with pineapple head's shirt… Au!" Marco had smacked the boy. "Careful what you say. And what you advice other people to do with my property, yoi." The commanders laughed. Shaking his head Marco shot them some icy glances, after which they calmed down.

"Want me to bring you over onto the island?" Marco asked in a low voice. Anne blushed slightly, feeling stupidly helpless. Seeing the inner conflict displayed on the woman's face, the phoenix smiled. "They're gonna make fun of me, not you."

Anne had to admit, Marco had a point there. Grinning she gave the phoenix a nod. She didn't know what she had expected; probably that he would kick her over the gap. Therefore the pirate let out a little cry of surprise when Marco lifted her onto his arms and jumped.

The raven-haired woman instinctively flung her arms around the phoenix's neck. Marco's skin felt comfortably cool against her own. While flying through the air, Anne noticed that the other commander was bringing them down a short distance behind their nakamas.

After their landing, the phoenix carefully let go. For a brief moment, Anne was standing a little too close to Marco. The older could still feel the heat she radiated, looking up at him with those dark brown eyes. The first division commander felt his heart speed up as he met her gaze.

Noticing that something was strange, Anne tilted her head and looked up at the phoenix, looking almost too cute. Marco closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Stepping back he brought a little more space between them. "You ok..?"

"Sure…" Marco said with a smile. It was forced and he was well aware that they both knew it. In the meantime the other commanders had closed up to them and were now undressing Anne with their eyes.

The blond sighed. That was another thing he had foreseen. Trying to think of a way to escape the other pirates he said: "How do you feel..?" The woman looked at him with a questioning look. Marco smirked and tried to hide his embarrassment. "Well... we need go buy you new cloth, yoi. I really like that shirt, you know?" Anne laughed and said: "Well, I guess I should be ok for a little shopping. Is there a town on this island?"

Without answering Marco changed and turned his back to the woman. Invisible for him, Anne smiled and climbed the phoenix's back. The burning feathers caressed the skin of her face as she pressed her nose into the plumage. Wrapping her arms around Marco's neck once again, she took in the smoky odor of the zoan creature. Then the phoenix took off and Anne forgot to breath. She felt the wind brush through her hair and smelt Marco's natural taste mix with the salty air of the sea.

Her heart ached from the feeling. It was freedom in it's purest form and regardless all the awful thing that had happened only hours ago, Ace felt his head become light. His smirk widened and he started laughing. This was beyond anything he had ever felt.

Anne had never heard of anyone who had been granted a ride on Marco's back. And thinking about it, she couldn't remember anyone that was close enough to the first division commander get this privilege. Well, maybe Thatch.

They flew over the forest into the direction of a small town that Anne could make out in the distance. She couldn't explain why, but she felt extremely safe on Marco's back. The woman could feel Marco's muscles correspond to every move the phoenix made. She felt the flaming feathers move in the wind. Curiously she wondered if her own fire would hurt Marco in this state.

They had never tried it out and now she really wanted to know. As she didn't want to risk her flight to end early, she kept her flames under control and didn't try anything.

Meanwhile Marco tried his best to convince himself that he was doing this to give Ace some time to get used to his new form. He didn't do this because he wanted to spend time with him; or her. Whatever…

Then the phoenix realized something and therefore had found a distraction from his inner conflict. Vista would probably be a pain in the ass from the moment they returned! Hearing Anne's overjoyed laughter help a little, too.

**B**elow them, on the clearing at the coast where the yellow submarine anchored, a crowd of rather surprised commanders gathered around a completely and utterly shocked Vista. Everyone wanted to know the same thing: Had anyone ever seen Marco letting someone ride on his phoenix's forms back?

Vista's answer to this was clear. He had seen it only once, but it had happened in secrecy, and he had sworn to never tell anyone about it, not even Oyaji. Once four people knew about it, today, only two of them were still alive. And it had happened years ago, long before Ace had joined the crew.

Well, this was getting interesting very fast. Vista grinned, what caused another wave of questions. But for once, the commander kept his mouth shut. Besides being a loyal friend, he knew that Marco would kick him to the moon if he let so much as slip a word about that matter.

**T**he flight was over too soon for Anne's liking. She loved the feeling. And while they were walking up the main shopping street, she said to Marco: "You know; I'm actually jealous of you." The commander arched an eyebrow at his young companion and waited for the rest of the comment. "I wish I could fly with my devil fruit ability. It's the most amazing feeling _ever_."

Marco stared at her for a moment then he smiled. "Don't get used to it. I never let anyone ride on my back." Anne looked up at him, pouting. The phoenix swallowed and was sure that this woman would probably be the exception to this rule. Oh, scratch that; she _was __for__ sure_ going to be the exception. And he was never gonna hear the end of it, if Vista realized that.

Anne walked over to one of the shops, staring at the window. Marco stepped behind her and peeked over her shoulder. A low whistle sounded. The woman whirled around, coming to a halt with her face only inches away from Marco's. The furious look in her eyes surprised him a bit. Anne opened her mouth, shut it again and turned back around.

The shop window displayed a pair of short black jeans and an orange top. Following a (stupid) impulse the first division commander bent down and murmured into Anne's ear. "If it fits you, it will sure make your life as a division commander much easier. They will follow you, just to get a better look on your ass, yoi."

Anne blushed heavily but didn't turn around again. She looked down on her feet and suppressed a desperate sigh. "I'm still Ace, you know. Somehow at least… So please stop making those remarks, Marco. I'm not one of those women you can get for one night when we're stopping by at an island." She made a step to the side and walked past the shop.

Ace had liked the clothes, really did. But fuck! Even though he felt like a woman (and Ace had quickly discovered that this also included clothes and shoes _and_ getting nervous at the sight of men like Marco, though that guy was not even particularly handsome, right?), somewhere deep down Anne could not forget that she was technically a man.

The next shop held more practical clothes: Long, loose trousers and similarly loose shirts. Anne checked the prices and thought them pretty reasonable. Ace used to spend a lot more for his favorite jeans, but as long as Anne didn't know what exactly she needed, these cheep things would do the trick.

Marco had followed her with some steps distance, mentally slapping himself. How could he..? She was his nakama, his _sister_. And even worse, she was Ace. She walked like him, smiled like him, talked like him.

But god, she was still so different. She moved her hips in such a feminine way when walking, her smile seemed to have this seductive touch and her voice was soft. He stepped behind her once more, looking at the clothes Anne was looking at now.

"Anne…" he said carefully. She flinched. Apparently the raven-haired woman hadn't heard him coming. But she didn't turn around. "Those clothes look awful, I'm serious, ok? And I can see it in your face that you don't like them either." Marco looked at Anne's face mirrored in the shop window and saw tears in her eyes. Whipping them away quickly the woman turned around. She made sure to take a step back in the process, so she got a bit more space between them. Gol D. Anne stared at him angrily and now Marco could clearly see Ace in her.

"Ace, I'm sorry. Wasn't too clever of me… It's ok if you don't want the others. But those" and he gestured to the clothes in the shop window: "you're not gonna buy either." The phoenix lifted his hand and carefully brushed a lock of black hair behind Anne's ear. She looked up at him with an uncertain look. Marco grinned. "No matter what you'll say, I liked the other clothes."

Anne smirked. "I'll so let you regret this." And judged by the devilish gleam in the woman's eyes, Marco was quite sure that he really would regret it. When the second division commander grabbed for his wrist and dragged him back to the first shop, the phoenix got a rough idea of how bad it would be.

**T**he lady in the shop gave Anne a friendly smile and then let her eyes wander hungrily over Marco's exposed torso. The phoenix ignored her and started to look around. Anne spotted the shirt from the shop window and picked it up, taking a few other pieces with her to the change room.

Anne might originally be a man but this didn't mean that she lacked the feminine instincts. And these instincts had told her, that Marco was reacting in a certain way to her new gained curves. She would so let him regret his stupid remark!

Besides, Ace decided, if he was already stuck in this body, he could also get some fun out of it. Getting himself some decent outfits was certainly part of this. He had noticed the looks the other commanders gave him. Marco was really behaving, hardly any staring. Sure, he had been shocked. And sure he was still male, which meant that he naturally reacted to Anne's body in a certain way.

With a weak smile Ace looked at his body, the body of a woman. Whatever force had caused this, had a good taste. His curves were nice, but not exaggerated. Yep, Anne looked hot. Adjusting the shirt he was trying on, Ace stepped out of the change room.

The phoenix, who had hardly paid attention to what his nakama did, turned around when Anne's soft voice called his name. She had chosen the short black jeans from the shop window, but combined it with a long-sleeved, fair blue shirt. The stretchy fabric was hugging her curves and the short jeans made the slender legs look even longer. Marco swallowed audibly, trying not to stare too much. He was actually really dreading the next outfits. Turning around to change, Anne smirked. This worked better than she could have hoped.

Marco's assumption proved true, when Anne showed him the next few outfits, one shorter then the other. Slowly, the phoenix truly realized what he had done. Trying to distract himself from the seductive view his nakama offered, he looked through the shop. An evil smirk crossed his features and he picked a piece of clothing from the rail. There were always two to play a game...

"Hey Anne, mind trying something on for me?" Marco asked through the curtain in front of the change room. "Sure.." The first division commander threw the piece into the change room, guessing by the surprised yelp, he had hit Anne with it. Smirking he leaned against a wall, waiting.

He had noticed that the raven haired woman chose pants only, so Marco had decided to give her something she'd been avoiding all the time.

"Hey! I'm not going to wear a dress – ever!" Anne snarled from behind the curtain. The phoenix chuckled. Jackpot! "Come on, Anne. I came shopping with you, which turns out to be a really exhausting experience. Do me that one favor, yoi." And, he added in his mind, you were acting like a freaking tease all afternoon.

The curtain was dragged aside, showing a very embarrassed Anne, wearing the dark red summer dress Marco had chosen for her. So she had already put it on when started complaining. His plan had been to make the woman blush, which had worked out just fine. The thing was that his plan had also kind of backfired on him. The second time this day Marco let out a low whistle, which forced Anne to shoot him an angry glare. "Anne, I'm serious, 'kay. You look fantastic!" The woman gave him a strange look and was turning around to change back to her original outfit. But Marco was not going to have any of this. Grabbing Anne by the waist he held her back. "Ace, please. Leave it on. It suits Anne, really."

Yanking free from his loose grip, Anne turned to grab the clothes she wanted. And she desperately needed a minute to get rid of the stupid blush. And the motherfucking butterflies*****…

**T**en minutes later, they were leaving the shop again. Marco had his shirt back and Anne had kept the dress on. The woman was still a bit red, though. The phoenix waited in a bar while Anne visited some shops of which Marco really didn't want to see her trying the merchandise on. Well, maybe he wanted to; but only a little bit. Shaking his head violently, he decided to walk around the shops close by.

By the end of the day, the two commanders carried along three bags with cloths, shoes and other small thingies a woman needed from time to time. "And now how exactly do you want to bring all that stuff over to the others?" Anne grinned broadly. She had quickly accustomed to the dress. Marco still hadn't. This woman was just too hot for her own good.

Shoving the thought aside, the phoenix changed and let Anne climb his back once more. Gripping the bags with his talons, Marco took off, carrying them back to their waiting crew.

**T**he commanders had calmed down a little. Vista and Jozu had decided to bring up the topic of the restructuring and now they were all engaged in a tough discussion about the replacements. They basically had agreed on everything already. But this didn't stop the discussion. They now had to discuss the possible effects of the new structure. And to tell the truth, it was distracting them from the overwhelming pain.

Marco carefully placed the bags on the ground before landing. Anne was sliding off his back making sure that the dress covered her body at every moment. The first division commander changed back, gently placing a hand at the small of Anne's back, leading her over to the other crewmembers.

Kuriel turned his head when he heard the two approaching. Other heads followed quickly, jaws dropped at Anne's sight. Marco smirked, meeting Vistas disbelieving gaze. Haruta grinned manically, literally ripping the raven-haired woman's clothes off with his eyes.

"Anything important happening during our absence?" the woman asked; annoyed by the ongoing staring. Jozu nodded, seemingly untouched by Anne's new appearance. "We settled for a new captain, as well as for the new leaders for the first, second and fourth division."

Anne frowned, suddenly feeling very unsure and asked: "I thought you would leave the second division with me..?" Vista shook his head. "You'll lead the first division." He signed the two commanders to come over to a table-high trunk on which a familiar black book lay. It contained the structure of the Whitebeard pirate crew as well as the names of all crewmembers.

On a once blank page, the new crew structure spread before Marco's eyes. He had been elected as the new captain; no surprise after what he learnt this morning. Anne had been assigned as first division commander, taking over the phoenix's old position. Jozu would move up. The sixteenth division had been closed, leaving room to move everyone from Vista on up one division. The only empty position now was the third division commander.

Anne didn't argue about her promotion. She was actually quite flattered by the trust of her crew. Though she felt rather uncomfortable with the new responsibility, she trusted in her new division to support her. She hoped that with their help, she would somehow manage to meet her captain's expectations. A challenge that was not easy to fulfill. Marco had been a perfect division commander, and he would be a good captain.

"Who do you suggest for this position?" After she had asked the question Haruta stepped forth. "We settled for my current deputy. He is quite young, a devil fruit user and shows first signs of Haki. His name is Arashi."

Marco sighed. He had met the boy a few times and he strongly reminded him of Thatch. Not from his looks, though. "Do you trust him?" "I put my life in his hands more than one, captain." Haruta answered, looking at Marco challengingly. He would not let anything come against his subordinate. The phoenix nodded. What could he do? There was no way he could ever be one hundred percent sure of the kid's loyalty. After taking a deep breath he looked from one commander to the next.

"Is there anything that speaks against this new structure?" No one said a word. Marco knew that he should now finish the process. He was the new captain after all. But somehow he couldn't bring himself to say a word. Taking over Oyaji's position was an honor that was for sure. The phoenix couldn't explain what kept him from forming even the smallest word now. It just felt strange and somehow wrong.

"Then I'd say, were done here. Right captain?" Marco's blue eyes flew over to a softly smiling Anne. He answered it with an almost invisible nod and finally found the strength to speak. "Then this is the new structure. Organize your new divisions accordingly. Should there be any trouble, please let me know."

He would have to thank her later. She had just saved his ass! He felt the small paper wrapped item heavy in his pocket.

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><p><strong>*<strong>_motherfucking __butterflies_: picked from a Harry Potter fanfiction I read. Author: WrittenAnonymous

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><p>First I'd like to thank you all for reading, following and adding this story to your favourites!<p>

Special thanks go to the amazing people that left a review! They mean everything to me.

So the crew got her new structure. I know it is fast, but please think about how difficult it will be for Whitebear's crew to survive.  
>They need to act because they are vunerable now.<p>

Poor Marco.. It's not going to get better for the new captain, though.

More emotions to come soon... I'll post a mini-preview (one or two sentences) via Tumblr on Wednesday evening CET. - **.com**

Next chapter will be up next week, same time!

**Read and Review Please! - Thanks.**


	3. The Fake Smile of Gol D Anne

Here we go!

This chapter was really fun to write. I like it.

**Disclaimer: **All Oda's still...

**Only warning I'll repeat**: The constant confusion between Anne and Ace is fully intendet.

Enjoy!

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><p><strong>A<strong>nne was sitting away from the main group, watching the small boat disappear on the night horizon. The Dark King had come around and taken her younger brother with him. Luffy had become so strong these past years, but discovering his Haki ability, the boy desperately needed training.

Had Anne known what Luffy, Rayleigh and Jimbei were up to, she might have joined them. Though this would have been a bad plan bearing in mind that the whole marine would have been up to kill her _again._

Anne sighed and looked down on her hands. They were smaller and so much more delicate. She actually wondered if she could still fight with them. Her gaze wandered over her arm to where her tattoo was. What would Sabo think if he could see her? She could do with a big brother now…

**M**arco had finalized some things with the other commanders and now sat with Jozu, planning their departure form the island. "You know, I think our little sister needs you more than I do right now." The phoenix looked over to the raven-haired woman, sighing. In the moonlight, she looked like a figure from another world. Marco had just decided to _not_ go over to her, when Vista joined him and the new commander of the second division.

He only gave his captain one of those looks, and the blond stood up. He hardly had a choice, really. Vista would kick his ass. The swordfighter had always liked Ace (everyone had) and Marco was pretty sure that Anne woke the same instinct to protect in Vista as she did in him.

For a second he thought that he would have to pick a fight with fourteen division commanders plus the bigger part of the crew if he ever decided to claim Anne as his. Mentally kicking himself, he walked over to the spot where Anne was sitting.

Anne flinched when Marco let himself fall beside him. The captain just sat there, waiting. And the young woman felt tears spring to her eyes. Cursing like the man she used to be, Anne made Marco chuckle. "What's up?"

His first commander looked at him, half crying and half laughing. "Guess… I'm a freaking _woman_!" Marco whipped away a stubborn tear, smiling down at the fragile woman that was his nakama. "Noticed that, yoi. And I guess there is no man in this crew that doesn't know about that nice little fact."

Anne growled. "Really. Not. Helping." She only got a low chuckle in response. Marco looked at her with an understanding smile. He just waited. He knew Ace. The boy would talk sooner or later, if he wanted to. And measured by the experience the phoenix had with women, they usually liked to talk too. Some gender typical thing, he guessed.

And as expected, it didn't take Anne long to start. "It's just so fucking confusing! For the last twenty years I was male and now, out of no particular reason, I am female. And I can tell you already, that includes all the usual girly bullshit. Though I highly doubt that I'll ever be a typical girl. Dealing with you folk will successfully suppress this." She laughed and looked up at Marco.

The blond stared at the dark water below. Anne leaned over and rested her head on her captain's shoulder. "It's so confusing. On one hand, I think I should still feel like the man I was, no matter what body I'm in. On the other hand, I naturally adapt to my new female body. I know that I walk differently. I do things I never used to before. And I do them automatically. It is like I've always been Anne. And…"

Marco felt that she was crying again. He moved his arm around her waist and pulled her closer, trying to comfort her with his presence. "And it scares me. I am so afraid of what is still going to happen with me. I'm terrified by the idea of losing the person I used to be. I mean, hell, I cry like a girl already."

Holding her a little tighter, Marco raised his voice: "You see, I noticed a few of those changes. Hell, did you realize you _pouted_ at me earlier today? I notice that you're acting differently. But I can also see Ace in you. And I am sure that this part of you will never fade completely. It is in your memories. It is _you_."

There was an almost comfortable silence during which they just sat there and watched the waves break against the stony cliffs. "I pouted?" It was a mere whisper but it made Marco smirk. "Yes, and it is fucking unfair." Anne giggled and then snuggled a little closer to her captain. The older pirate felt the comforting heat of her body and sighed softly. "There's one thing that didn't change, yoi. Your devilfruit ability still feels like it always did."

"Thank you." "What for, Anne?" She closed her eyes. "For being the best friend and big brother I need right now." Marco felt pain flaring through his heart but shoved the sensation aside. There was no way that he would allow himself to feel this way. Not for Ace. Or Anne. "Always", Marco said.

**A** few meters away, hidden in the shadows stood Vista. He didn't listen or anything. He just wanted to be sure that they were ok. Seeing Marco carry the raven-haired woman on his back had woken things from his buried memories, things he had tried to forget. Not all of them. He never wanted to forget _her._ She had belonged to the other crew, somehow at least, but she had been the most amazing person Vista had ever met. Even Oyaji had a hard stand against the awe he felt towards _her_.

Shaking his head, he walked back to the other commanders.

**M**arco listened to Vista's footsteps and risked a quick glance at Anne. She seemed to be asleep and so the captain allowed himself to look at her a little longer. The raven-haired woman's freckles were still the same as they had been with Ace and looked still so different on Anne's face.

"You look so much like her." Marco hadn't intended to say the words out loud. And when Anne opened her eyes, looking at him tiredly, the obvious question written all over her face, the blond wished he hadn't said it aloud.

"No one, Anne", he said and turned his head back to face the ocean. It was calm for a while. Suddenly, the woman sat up, leaving Marco to miss her warmth immediately. Anne looked at him, but the phoenix refused to meet her gaze. "Did you know her?" Marco felt his heart clench in fear. This was not a story to be told to anyone. "Who are you talking about?"

Anne smiled knowingly and leaned back against her captain. "Every story has the right moment to be told. And obviously, this is not the moment for this part of her story." The phoenix took a shuddering breath, holding Anne close to his body. "Thanks…"

"Always!"

**T**he blond waited, listening to Anne's breathing evening. She was asleep, truly this time. Marco didn't try to stand up. The woman's body heat would keep them both warm and the captain didn't want to risk waking her up.

He remembered the day like it had been yesterday...  
>Rouge had been a beautiful woman; and clever too. She had just showed up on the Moby Dick one day, walking up to Whitebeard's seat. She had met everyone with the same gentle acceptance. No matter who they used to be or what they had done or not done. She had been at par with Whitebeard, no surprise, thinking about who her partner had been. She had smiled when she told Whitebeard that Roger had been captured, told him that the Pirate King had handed his life to the Marine the night before. Then she had said good-bye to them all, whishing them all the best.<p>

It had been as if she knew what was coming. Maybe she did. There had always been something mysterious about her, must be. Even after all those years, Marco couldn't believe that she carried her son for almost two years. And hell, he now held the living proof of this powerful act in his arms the very moment.

She had understood the world in a way that maybe no one else beside Roger had. "Your son is so similar to you; and to Roger. He never wanted to hear it, and I bet Anne doesn't want to either. But she truly is your child." Absent-mindedly Marco stroked his fingers through the raven hair.

After she had bid them all farewell, she had walked over to Whitebeard's second in command. A genuine smile on her lips, she had asked him a whispered question. He nodded and she disappeared in the small boat she had come to the Moby Dick with.

Hours later, in the middle of the night, Marco, Thatch and Vista had been on the watch, she had returned. The first division commander told the others to cover for him. Then he had changed and let Rouge climb his back.

For a short moment, the zoan creature had been afraid to burn her. She had just laughed and strengthened the grip around his neck. Haki, it had crossed his mind. He took off, leaving Vista and Thatch gapping.

Yes, this was the story. He never understood why Rouge had come to the Moby Dick that day; or how she had found them. Neither did he understand why she wanted to get this one flight on his back. And in the end, he never got the chance to ask her.

The next time he had heard her name, had been the day when Portgas D. Ace showed up with his crew and announced that he was here to kill Whitebeard. Marco smiled at the thought, looking down on the woman in his arms. With Rouge's child on the ship, it never got boring.

"So you are a woman now, who cares. You're still as annoying as ever."

**W**ith a last soft sigh, Marco lifted Anne onto his arms and carried her over to the Moby Dick. He kicked the door to his cabin open. Carefully, he placed her in his bed and was ready to walk away again, when her small hand gripped his shirt and held him back.

Looking down on her, he noticed that she was still sleeping, clinging to the purple fabric subconsciously. Softly (and halfheartedly) Marco tried to yank free. When failing, he decided to just accept his fate. Kicking off his shoes he joined Anne on the bed, pulling the blanked over them.

Still deep in thoughts as he was, he forgot to lock the door. Despite all the things that ran through his mind tough, he fell asleep very fast, feeling Anne's comforting warmth against his back.

**W**hen he opened his eyes again, the sun had already risen and a broad grinning Vista was standing at the foot of his bed. It took Marco a little while to comprehend, why this grin was a bad sign.

Realization hit home when he tried to get up and found Anne's arms wrapped around his body. While sleeping, she had apparently decided to use him as a giant teddy bear. Oh joy. With a gentle smile, he freed his torso from her tight embrace and got up.

Vista's mercy went as far as to step aside and let him crawl out of bed. The forth division commander's grin widened when he watched his captain carefully cover Anne with blanket before leaving his cabin.

"One word and I'll make sure that your division gets the most awful jobs for the rest of this century." The phoenix snarled, once he closed the door behind them. Vista smiled knowingly, but left the matter for the moment. There would be a party sooner or later and if he managed to get his captain drunk…

The moment Vista thought this, Marco made a mental note to stay sober for the coming few weeks. Stepping onto the main deck of the Black Moby Dick, Marco found the crew already pretty busy. Jozu and part of his division were nowhere to be seen and so the blond guessed that they had already left to fill up the supplies.

Marco found that his commanders were doing a rather good job, so he decided that he could get himself a coffee before he started ordering people around. He retreated to the galley only to grab two cups filled with the hot brown drink and then made his way back to his cabin.

Anne woke up when Marco kicked the door close. Yawing she sat up in the bed, wondering where exactly she was. The phoenix noticed her confusion. Holding one cup out for her, he sat down on the bed and explained: "My cabin. You fell asleep out on the cliffs, so I brought you here."

Nodding, Anne grabbed for the cup, happily breathing in the strong smell of coffee. "Thanks." The raven-haired woman held the cup in one hand and with the other tried to wrap the blanked closer around her shoulders.

Putting his own cup aside, Marco helped her, before she could spill coffee onto his white bed sheets. "There are a few things I need the first division to do. And with you being the new commander, I'd like you to make sure they get done."

Anne merely nodded. She watched the blond stand up and suddenly realized something. "Where are my other cloths?" Marco pointed at the shopping bags, standing beside his desk. The first division commander smiled, blushing slightly. "Thanks."

**S**tepping out onto the main deck, Anne immediately drew the attention of the crew to her person. She had settled for a pair of black jeans that one could almost call long and the fair blue shirt she had tried on first.

The crewmembers that hadn't seen their commander in his female form yet, blankly stared at the pretty young woman. Sure, the rumor about Anne had spread like a wildfire. But the general opinion had been that she would still look rather manly. Whoever had believed this was now taught the truth the hard way.

Anne put on her cocky grin and walked over to a man of which she knew had been Marco's second in command. The captain joined her seconds after she had reached the man. "Reji, as you already know, this is your new commander, Gol D. Anne."

Reji was a tall, strong man with brown hair and a grim expression. His left arm had been bandaged and a half healed scar was visible under his shirt. Anne gave him a nod. Marco was waiting for her next step. Given the fact that she had been a commander before, this shouldn't be a problem for her.

The raven-haired pirate knew how to lead a division. What she didn't know were the additional duties the first division commander had to take over.

Reji was a harsh man and having a woman as commander would be a low blow for him. And in this case it didn't matter that Anne was Ace. But the new commander of the first division instinctively felt the danger and somehow managed to find the right words. "Reji, I am aware of the usual duties of a division commander. But I fear I don't know the additional tasks I'll have to take care of from now on. I would appreciate your help in adjusting to my new responsibility."

Even Marco was surprised by this politically correct behavior. Ace had never been one for the subtle way. Maybe Anne's female instincts help in this. Reji gave a quick nod and asked her to follow him.

The phoenix knew where he would lead the woman. In the cabin of the first division commander was a big desk and a few books. These were the basis for her work was new commander of the first division. Macro smiled softly. Reji would take good care of her.

"**S**he's winning their hearts, one after another." Vista's voice woke him from his thoughts. Marco nodded then hesitated. "Of course! She's still Ace. And if you remember, everyone _loved_ that kid. Even when he was still after Oyaji's head…"

The forth division commander nodded in agreement. It was true. Ace had always been everybody's darling. Though Vista had to admit that he had expected the crew to react harsher to the now commonly known bloodline. Maybe some of them were forgetting it because of Anne's winning smile.

Vista looked at his captain and saw him frowning. "She'll be ok, don't worry." Marco shrugged and walked over to another commander. His friend followed him with his eyes, a worried look on his face. The swordfighter knew that Marco was the one and only to lead the crew, but the responsibility was high.

The next few weeks were crucial for the fate of the pirates. As soon as the Marine found out about Anne, they would be on for a merciless hunt. Akainu would not give up his prey. The admiral was one of those believing in the _Absolute __Justice_ and Vista hated him wholeheartedly for it. Absolute Justice was the reason Ace had almost died. Absolute Justice was the reason Oyaji was dead.

The problem was that they also needed to protect at least some of the islands Whitebeards had called part of his territory. But that included making their new crew structure public. The world needed he hear about the division commanders and their new captain. They needed to know that his sons would carry on Whitebeard's will.

Vista felt a shiver run down his spine when thinking about another danger this strategy would bring: Blackbeard. They would have to face him sooner or later. But at the moment, they would not be capable of defeating him. The crew this traitor had gathered around him was a danger no one was able to judge yet.

**M**arco saw Anne and Reji coming back onto the main deck. Anne had her cocky grin in place and Reji seemed rather relaxed. Nevertheless, the phoenix was still worried about the first division commander. Anne's smile looked fake to him, but maybe he was just paranoid now.

The blond wanted his nakama to be happy; and the mere though that she was just pretending made his heart ache. He shook his head and shoved his hands in his pockets. His fingers closed around the small object he still carried along.

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><p>A huge thanks to all those that read and follow this story. Special Thanks go to <span>sunbug-ceres<span> and meka18!

About Rouge's story. It has a reason this comes in here. I always feel strange when writing about something from the past. Especially as we don't know if Oda will somewhen reveal something more about it.  
>Personally I feel Rouge is one of the most amazing women in the whole One Piece world. What she did for her child, it's just...<p>

Mini Preview for the forth chapter will be online Wednesday around midnight CET on **rosedelsol. tumbler. com**

Next Chapter to come in a week's time!

**Read & Review please - Thanks!**


	4. Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friends

My dears, here we go! ^^

Chapter four presents itself..

**Disclaimer:** All Oda's

**Warning:** Constant confusion between Ace/ Anne are fully intendet

Enjoy!

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><p><strong>B<strong>urying their father was the most heartbreaking experience Marco had made in his life. Sure, they had all known that Oyaji was dead. But to bury his body and cover it with cold earth let realization finally hit completely. He would never come back. Their father, the man that gave them everything they were, was dead.

Marco was the last to turn away from the cold stone. He had been the first to join Whitebeard's crew and therefore it was only fair that he would be the last to leave his father's side. Oyaji had made sure his sons would be able to go on without him.

The only comfort they had was that Whitebeard died the way he had lived. Their father had died standing, no medical devices attached to his body. He had died like the proud and strong man he had always been. Marco whipped away the tears for what felt the millionth time today. "I'll come back and tell you what happened to your family. I'll come back and tell you, every once in a while. See you, Pops…"

He turned around and found Anne standing at the foot of the hill, waiting for him. He walked down to her, grateful that she didn't leave. Taking him in a soft embrace, she let him cry on her shoulder while Marco felt her small frame tremble with her own tears.

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><p><strong>T<strong>he days passed and it was time for them to leave. They were almost ready to go when an explosion shook the Black Moby Dick. "What in Davy Jones' name was that?"

Marco was running into the direction of the raising smoke. He heard a cough and then saw Anne and Reji emerge from the lower deck. The blond raised an eyebrow at his first division commander. Anne gave him a cocky grin. "Sorry..?"

Marco looked at Reji. "My fault, captain. Forgot that she's a freaking fire woman." The blond stared at them. He would expect things like this from Ace… But Reji? "Marco… It was _my_ fault. Apparently, Anne is a lot jumpier than Ace used to be."

The captain walked past them and headed for Anne's cabin. Looking at the completely destroyed door and the still smoking bed, Marco sighed heavily. Where the hell should Anne sleep now? Feeling the familiar presence of his first commander, he turned around.

"It wasn't really Reji's fault. I thought he was attacking me so I let loose a little ehm… tornado." Anne looked really sorry. Marco could tell that she was trying not to look like a freaking puppy. She kind of succeeded but still she was so adorable. "Oh… Stop this already!" Marco growled and looked away. Mentally he was repeating over and over again: This is Ace! Ace! A.C.E! – It didn't help.

**A**n hour later they had set sail and were heading for the open water. Wind tugged at his hair and the ocean that he was both dreading and loving spread infinitely around him. He took a deep breath, tasting the salty smell that meant home to him.

Reji stepped beside him silently waiting. The man knew his captain well. And so he waited. "Was it her fault only?" Reji shook his head. "It was an accident. I thought she had heard me and she apparently didn't." Marco nodded. And noticed how surprisingly relieved he was. "You will take care of her, right?"

His former second in command laughed. "Anne is my commander, not otherwise. And she is Ace, you shouldn't forget this." The phoenix gritted his teeth, knowing exactly that he was forgetting about this far too often. "Another thing, captain" Switched Reji the topic: "Where will she sleep?"

Marco stared at him. He had thought about it once but afterwards he had completely forgotten about this. "I kind of thought Ace would sleep in the main quarters. But of course that will not work." Lovely! His subconscious was choosing Anne's gender randomly now.

Reji laughed. "Knew that coming. I discussed with Jozu. He seems to be the most reasonable of the commanders when it comes to Anne. Only one that doesn't want to jump her straight away… Well, we decided that you'll have to take her into you're cabin."

Marco smirked humorlessly. "I bet Vista was involved in that discussion too, yoi." Reji didn't say anything. He just silently smiled at his captain. Marco went under deck and headed for his cabin, grumbling.

**U**pon his arrival he found that his cabin was not empty, as he had expected. Anne sat on his bed, a towel wrapped tightly around her. Her black hair was still dripping wet. The blond took a careful step backward. Retreating from his own room, luckily unnoticed he made his way back to the main deck.

This may have been Ace. But this was also Anne. And Anne was a woman that made him nervous. Full stop. He couldn't change it. She was beautiful. Ace's careless and almost naïve way to handle his new appearance made Anne unbelievably gorgeous. And that smile..! Within a few days the woman had completely won him over.

It had started with affection and worry for a younger sister and changed to something uncontrollable. When she had been waiting for him at the grave, it had felt like she had always been there by his side. Having her beside him felt like the most natural thing to him.

Marco sat down, leaning against the railing and closed the eyes. This woman would be his death. As a captain he shouldn't favor one commander over the others. But with her puppy dog eyes and the pouting lips, Anne could get anything from him. If she wanted.

But of course she didn't. Because she was Ace, meaning she was male and cocky and annoying and stubborn. Unconsciously he took the small paper wrapped gift he had bought for her from his pocked. What on earth had he been thinking? Well… He had probably just forgotten that Anne was Ace once again. When he had stood in front of that shop, it just felt right to buy them.

Lost in his thoughts, Marco hadn't heard Izou approaching. Only when the other commander picked the gift from his hands he looked up. For a second he considered demanding the item back but then he thought that it wasn't even worth trying. Izou was a loyal man but also extremely nosy.

A sound of appreciation came from the commander of the fifteenth division. "They're beautiful." Carefully Izou wrapped the paper back around the little gift and gave it back to his captain. Marco looked away, not knowing what to say.

Izou stood casually beside him, looking at the darkening sky. "It's not only you. All the commanders adore her. Anne's beauty combined with Ace's cockiness is a little too much for most to take." The commander looked down on Marco with a knowing grin. The captain only rolled his eyes.

"So what if. She's Ace. And I doubt that he would be too thrilled to find it out." Izou laughed. "Give her time." And with this Izou left. Marco sighed heavily and buried his face in his hands. It hadn't even been two weeks. How could this have happened?

"Oh and captain." He looked up and saw Izou standing at the door. "I'm sure she'll love them."

**I**n the mean time, Anne began to wonder where Marco was. She hoped that he wasn't looking for another resting place. The raven-haired pirate didn't want to steal her captains bed, especially not as it was her own fault that her cabin was completely destroyed.

Though she had to admit that she was really glad that her shopping bags had still been in Marco's cabin, when she let her fire tornado loose this afternoon. The cloths had cost her a fortune! Rummaging through the smallest bag, she realized that she hadn't bought any jewelry at all. Not that she was particularly into the glittery stuff (she was a _man_ after all, remember?). But Ace's red necklace looked just stupid on her.

Leaning back on the bed, she sighed. Nothing, of course. She had only bought clothing and shoes. "I'll buy something nice on the next island." Anne murmured and looked at the door.

That was the moment Marco stepped into the room. To his relive Anne had dressed, though the cloths she was wearing weren't really helping to calm his boiling blood down. Walking over to his desk and intensely staring at some of the paperwork there, he asked: "You forgot something?"

Anne blushed. She didn't think that he could have overheard that. And giving an answer was definitely no option. She was a man. And men didn't wear those stupid gold and glittery stuff women did. Well, maybe Vista or Izou, but they were the exception.

The phoenix turned around and looked at her. Anne knew that she would tell him sooner or later anyways. But it was just so embarrassing. Marco raised an eyebrow at her. "Well… You see, my red necklace doesn't really fit anymore. And as I'm somehow female now, I was thinking about buying some jewelry. Nothing big, of course!"

The raven-haired woman didn't look at Marco while she spoke. She just felt too embarrassed. Ace didn't give a flying fuck about how he looked like. He cared about his two tattoos and about his hat. The rest of his appearance wasn't really important to him.

Marco felt for the paper wrapped object in his pocket. Should he really..? "Will you come shopping with me again?" Anne gave him one of her cocky grins. At least she was not pouting again. The phoenix had his fingers still closed around the object in his pocked but couldn't bring himself to give it to Anne.

"We'll see soon enough, I guess." And with this, Anne yawned and lay down, immediately calming the whole blanket for herself. Marco raised an eyebrow. She didn't even need the blanket, being the fire woman she was! With a snarl he kicked off his shoes and slipped out of his shirt. Anne opened one eye when he lay down beside her.

"Mind sharing, commander?" A grin and Anne drew the blanket a little closer to her body. "I guess that is a yes then." Marco turned around, sighed and tried to fall asleep. A deafening silence hung in the air. And after a few minutes, a tiny little shiver ran through Marco's body. Being half-naked in the middle of the night without blanked was not particularly warm after all.

Though asking again was no option. The phoenix heard Anne move. Then the blanket was spread over him. Next thing he felt was Anne's warm body pressed against his back, one arm lazily put around his waist. "What..?"

"I changed my mind, _captain._" Marco took a deep breath, trying to slow his hammering heart. This is Ace, this is Ace, this is… With Anne's body pressed against him like that, he could have been thinking about Teach or Akainu and it wouldn't have distracted him at all.

He closed his eyes and concentrated to keep his breath even. Besides the fact that Anne was smoking hot, he just didn't get laid in a long time. Damn fucking pirate life... Marco felt her warm breath graze his neck. He sat up.

Anne immediately let go and looked up at him with a sleepy look. The phoenix knew that it had been a bad move. But it had also been the only one he could think off. Otherwise he might have turned around and did something very, very stupid.

"Marco..?" The blonde looked at her. What should he say? I need to get out of here because otherwise I'm gonna rape you? So not going to happen. Marco lay back down and turned his back to the woman. He tucked his legs up, clenched his fists and concentrated on the feeling of having a little wrapped gift in his pocket.

Anne didn't lie back down. She got up and left the cabin, slamming the door shut behind her. Marco's hands flew to his crotch before he could do anything against it. Taking a shuddering breath he rolled on his backs and forced his hand to lie beside him. "Shit…"

**A**nne stood on the main deck, feeling the night air wash over her body. She knew what had happened. Hell, she knew how men reacted to women. And she knew how a pirate's life was. If they didn't swing the other way, life on a ship was pretty lonely.

_How_ was she able to forget this? Ace was young, he had less control over himself and a bigger need – She knew the feeling. Though Marco never showed any signs of interest in women (or men, by the way) he was only human after all. Without being narcissistic Ace knew that Anne was hot.

Ace leaned against the main mast, banning his head against it. How. Fucking. Stupid. Could. He. Be? With every word he hit his head against the wood until a voice from above stopped him.

"Anne. If you need a headache, I can help you. But stop hitting a hole in my mast." Thank goodness, it was Jozu. Without second thoughts the raven-haired woman climbed up to the crow's nest. The second division commander was the only man on the ship that didn't go crazy over Anne. Though he wasn't really one to talk to. Oh and Izou of course. But that guy had some hidden agenda when it came to her new appearance. Anne just wasn't sure what it was exactly.

The man stepped aside to give Anne better access to the crow's nest. She slid down along the mast and curled up against the wood. Jozu just stood there and waited for whatever was going to happen. His eyes were flying around, making sure no one could approach the Black Moby Dick unnoticed.

"Jozu…" Anne started, unsure how to continue. "How difficult is it for the other commanders that I'm female now?" Jozu didn't look at her. "You're asking because of the commanders or because of our captain?" Damn Jozu and his brilliant perception skills. "Marco…"

The second division commander smirked. That had been so obvious. "It depends on how you act." Damn Jozu and his cryptic advice (that fitted so fucking perfect)! "I'm going back to bed." She spit and with this, Anne started climbing down and headed for the captain's cabin once again today. Growling she stomped over the deck to the door that lead to the lower decks. He was acting like a stupid woman with PMS. A shiver ran down his spine at the mere thought of something like this. Shaking her head, Anne decided that this wasn't her most urgent problem at the moment.

**S**he knocked before she entered. Marco called her in immediately. The blond was sitting on his bed, playing with a little object in his hands. He didn't look at her and she didn't dare to move away from the door.

"I'm sorry, Ace." She smiled and shook her head. "It's ok. I should know better, right?" Marco turned his head and met her soft eyes. "Guess we're both underestimating the situation, yoi." Her smile changed to the cocky grin the phoenix knew so well, though with an unfamiliar unsure edge to it.

"Can I… Can I still sleep here? I could also find another place if you…" While Anne had been babbling, Marco had risen from his sitting position, put the object he had held between his fingers back into his pocket, and walked over to her. Holding a finger to her lips, he said. "Always."

The phoenix tilted his head and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek. The careful touch knocked the breath out of Ace and left him completely and utterly shocked. What the…? Marco gave him a gentle smile and walked back to the bed.

It took Anne a few seconds to react. Then she followed and laid down beside her captain, this time with her back showing into his direction. Marco drew the blanket over them and wished her a good night.

The phoenix fell asleep quickly. Anne lay awake for a few more minutes, fingers touching the spot where his lips had been. It had only been seconds but… She drifted to sleep with a small smile on her lips.

**W**hen Marco woke up the next morning, Anne had already left. Though judge by the amount of cloths lying loosely around in the room he thought she might only be in the shower. Recalling the events of last night, the phoenix blushed. Now what in Davy Jones' name had he been thinking this time..?

Letting his gaze wander over the room he noticed a pile of cloths that had been draped over one of the chairs carefully. The phoenix frowned. "I thought she didn't like the dress…" Anne chose the very moment to step back into the cabin. Her hair was messy and only half dried. A dark towel was wrapped around her body and judged by the white straps over her shoulders, she was at least not naked. Thank god!

"I came to like it. But I would love to have some nice bracelet or something to wear with it." She turned to one of the bags and picked a shirt and short trousers to put on for now. Marco quickly turned his head away and closed his eyes. That was something he didn't want to see. Not like that.

"You can open your eyes again." Marco looked at her. She smiled her most adorable smile and held a hand out to him. He took it and was lifted to his feet. "You're surprisingly strong, for a woman." She snarled. "I. Am. Ace!"

He grabbed fresh cloths from a pile and walked to the door. "I know." He said, a desperate tone in his voice. The phoenix didn't look back. Anne followed him with her dark brown eyes. When he had shut the door behind him, she sighed heavily. "Then why are you doing all those things..?"

She let herself fall on the bed and watched the ceiling. The raven haired pirate wasn't sure whether she wanted him to treat her like Ace or like Anne. A sad smile tugged at her lips. Both, she realized. She wanted him to see the best friend Ace had always been. And she wanted him to see the beautiful woman she was now. "But that will never work… I'll have to choose between the vulnerable woman and the tough guy." A single tear ran down her cheek. How could she choose when she wanted both..?

Marco leaned at the door to his cabin, listening to her words. He needed all his self control to not go back in and just kiss her. With a desperate sigh he made his way to the bathroom.

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><p>I had an awful hard time writing the first scene in this one. I hope it can show a little of the emotion I tried to bring across...<p>

Well well... Things start to get tense now.

Poor Marco. And poor Anne. Must be hard to be thrown into a female body and suddenly have to deal with all the hormonal shit..

I know she's pretty moody in this one. But seriously.. She had to loose it at some point. Until now she was extremely strong and stable. In this chapter I wanted to show a bit of the crazyness of Ace's/ Anne's situation. But I won't let it go too deep. That would make the story a little too complicated. And I never planned 'Always' to go that deep.

Marco is slowly loosing it. Poor guy. And all his noble self control is wasted by Ace's way of carrying his new appearance. And then there are Izou and Vista of course. XDD

Thanks once more to all the amazing people out there reading and reviewing this. It's amazing to see how many thoughts some of you put into this story. More than I would ever have come up with... Thank you so much!

**Read & Review please - Thanks!**


	5. In Dark Corners and Small Corridors

Hello Again!

Here comes the next chapter. I have to say I really loved to write this one. But I also have to say that I was rewriting it over and over again to get it as good as possible. Hope you like it too!

**Disclaimer: **All Oda's still.

Enjoy!

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><p><strong>W<strong>hen Marco was on the way back to his cabin, he met Izou. The commander gave him a questioning look. The phoenix knew what he was up to - the earrings. So he just shook his head. Izou rolled his eyes and headed for the kitchen to get some breakfast. The blonde returned to his cabin.

When entering, he was a little taken aback by the picture Anne gave. She had cuddled up in the bed, sobbing horribly. Marco kicked the door shut and hurried over to his bed. Sitting down beside the trembling woman, he shook her violently. "Anne, what's wrong?"

That was when she realized that she was no longer alone. She furiously whipped away the tears and tried to regain her composure. Then she sat up and adjusted her shirt. "Anne. What happened?" She just shook her head and was trying to stand up. Marco wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her onto his lap.

She struggled and tried to free from his iron grip, accidently releasing her devil fruit powers. Marco hissed in pain, before his own power worked against the injury. "Anne… Anne!" Suddenly her resistance faded and she started sobbing again. Marco pressed her head against his shoulder, whispering soothing words until she calmed down a little. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." A sarcastic laugh escaped the phoenix. "Ace, I know you. It's not like you to start crying out of nothing." He didn't get an answer. So he let her cry silently at his shoulder, while hugging her tight.

After a few minutes, which tore Marco's heart to pieces, Anne had calmed down. "I don't know who I am. I don't want to be a vulnerable little girl. I don't want this new body be the end of my time as a pirate."

The blond remembered the desperate words he had overheard before and started to realize what her problem was. "Hey, listen to me. You are Ace and you are Anne. You don't need to be a scared, vulnerable little girl. You can still be a commander. And you can still be a tough fighter." He pressed a kiss on her hair. "You are who you've always been. Just a bit different."

Marco smiled down on her, as Anne raised her head. Her eyes were red and puffy. "What do _you_ want me to be..?" She asked with a broken voice. With his next words he hurt himself more than he though possible. There were a few things he would have liked her to be. All of them were selfish and wouldn't help to calm her. So he told her the simple truth. Truth that somehow included all his selfish wishes without naming them. "I want you to be happy. Nothing more, nothing less."

He was a little surprised when she flung her arms around his neck and hugged him. "Thank you, Marco." He returned the embrace, burying his face in her hair. It was true; he wanted her to be happy. And if it meant to be her best friend and captain (only), then he would be exactly that.

He placed two fingers below her chin and forced her to lift her head. He resisted the urge to kiss her and instead said: "Let's go for breakfast." She smiled and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. Then Anne stood up and walked over to the door. "You're the best captain one can wish to have!"

**T**he kitchen was a mess, as always. Marco shook his head at the chaos his nakama had produced and walked to the table of the first division. The commanders ate with their divisions and the captain had planed to go from table to table.

Anne formed a fire ring around a half-empty pot of coffee and heated the liquid while grabbing for some food. Marco smiled. She seemed quite happy. But today would be tough. The phoenix knew that organizing the first division was a bit of a pain. Even though Anne had won Reji over, she still needed to convince the rest of the crew.

The blond saw Izou looking at Anne closely. The commander of the fifteenth division shot his captain an angry glance. Marco raised an eyebrow. Izou wouldn't leave him in peace until the small gift had found its way to Anne. The blond closed his eyes for a moment. He opened them again seconds later, only to find that _somehow_ his coffee that he had only got moments prior, had vanished. He shot Anne a glance.

The raven-haired woman smirked and handed him back a half empty cup. A quick look around and Marco understood the issue. Someone from the first division had accidently picked Anne's cup and upon noticing it, he let it drop.

Poor boy. He had only joined the crew a few weeks ago and had already seen too many deaths. He was still more a kid than an adult and had joined Whitebeard's family because he had no other choice. His real family had cast him out the moment they had realized that he was able to use Haki.

Marco knew that the kid would be one of the strongest in the division in only a few years time. Maybe one day he could even lead his own division. Only if the crew survived that long, though.

Of course now, the boy was just seriously scared. Ace was famous for his choleric behavior when it came to his coffee. But apparently Anne was fine. Maybe because she stole half of my coffee, Marco thought. The commander gave the boy a broad smile and helped him collect the shards of the cup.

The phoenix smiled. Anne was doing a really good job. And her smile didn't look fake anymore. The captain grabbed his cup and walked over to Vista. Sailing meant that there was not too much to do for them. Sure, they needed to make sure their stock would last until they reached the next island. And they had to think about their allies and their territory. So Marco presumed that the first few days would be pretty hasty nevertheless.

**A**s expected he was extremely busy for the following few hours and when he saw Anne the next time it was already late afternoon. He crossed her in one of the small corridors in the lowest part of the ship. She just left one of the rooms Marco knew exactly belonged to the first division. Reji had informed her well.

When seeing him, Anne shot him a broad smile. Marco smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Are you enjoying yourself?" She laughed. "I don't get bored." With a shrug she stepped closer to him and Marco felt his heart speed up. He was ready to be her friend only, but he couldn't ignore what he felt. And she made it hard for him to control his feelings…

Anne looked up to him and said. "Sorry that I stole your coffee today." Marco shook his head. It wasn't really an issue. But her close proximity and her adorable smile _were_ an issue. He just hoped they would reach the next island soon. He needed to get laid, desperately.

And then, out of a sudden urge, he bent down, casually ignoring that he technically knew better than to make this mistake. His lips were almost touching Anne's, her eyes looking at him with a slightly confused look. But to his surprised, there was no resistance.

"Commander Anne! We have a problem up here. Move your lazy ass to the laundry!" Marco wasn't sure if it was relief or disappointment that he saw in her eyes. He watched her running up the stairs to meet Reji and realized that from now on, he would hope. And he knew that it would tear his heart to pieces, every time he would meet her gaze.

**W**hen Anne stumbled into the kitchen for dinner, she was soaked in soap water and didn't look particularly impressed. Marco nearly chocked at his noodles when he looked at her. Had no one told her that white fabric got transparent when wet?

The captain guessed that whoever had notice was probably too busy staring to be able to talk. Anne stomped to her seat and grabbed for a bowl. Her whole division was gaping at her sight. The rim of her bra was clearly visible under her white shirt and Marco forced himself to concentrate on his noodles again.

Anne quickly ate something and then stormed off again. In the mean time, the rest of the first division that had been in the laundry had shown up. They were all as wet as their commander and the phoenix could now overhear their conversation.

Apparently, two youngsters had decided that a fight over 'who would get the commander' was a brilliant idea. And Reji had brought Anne to get rid of the issue, once and for all. She had been careful not to hurt them too much. But steam was brutally hot and no one was to be expected to fight over Anne again in the near future.

Marco finished his dinner and decided to spend his first division commander a visit. Leaning against the doorframe he looked at the laundry. It was a mess. The dirty and the clean laundry were spread all over the floor. Everything was wet and full of soap. Anne was currently collecting the cloths and shoved them in a basket.

The phoenix grinned and started helping her and soon enough, the laundry was tidied up but still soaked. "Shouldn't the stupid kids be doing this?" She laughed. "While I look like this?" Marco knew immediately what she was referring to. He looked down to his hands, while sorting some soap that didn't need sorting. So she had noticed, after all.

Anne stepped over to him and forced him to look at her. He focused on her eyes, those warm brown eyes. Marco swallowed hard. He couldn't look away. And when she started to close the distance between them, the blond didn't know what to do. "Anne..." he whispered. She smiled and for a moment he saw Ace. It kicked Marco back to reality. He took a step back and fled.

**H**e retreated to one of the loneliest places in the whole ship, the end of a tiny corridor. It was cold down there, the seawater only meters away on the other side of the wooden planks. Marco sat there, his face buried in his hands. She was Ace. And that was exactly his problem.

Of course he wanted her. And apparently she somehow felt the same towards him. But what if she suddenly changed back to her male form again? Was it only Anne's new appearance that caused those feelings, or was it truly about the person behind those brown eyes? What if it had nothing to do with the person she was, but with her new look? If they started something they would be breaking some unspoken rule. You just didn't touch your nakama. Not for the sake of mere lust.

He took the little present from his pocked and unwrapped it. The golden earrings were small and a tiny diamond glittered on each clip. Izou was right. They were beautiful. And they would fit Anne. But would they fit Ace? Not Ace's body of course. But him as a person…

Anne had said she wanted jewelry, though. "So why can't I give them to her?" He knew the answer. Because he wished that they would be something special for her. Because he wanted to be someone special for her; someone else than her nakama and captain. He leaned his head against the wood and sighed.

It didn't answer the original question, though. Did he mind, that Anne might be Ace again one day? He closed his eyes and imagined Anne's smile and face. All those special attitudes that she had were Ace's. Her personality was a little more female than it used to be (please remember her weakness for clothes and shoes), but it was still Ace.

And Ace had always been his favorite commander and nakama. Though he was never allowed to show it, because he had to be fair towards everyone. Thatch had known of course. Marco could never keep anything from the forth division commander.

A desperate laugh left Marco's lips. "No, of course I don't mind it…" But he shouldn't do this. Anne was still so unsure when it came to her new personality. He didn't want to hurt her. He… "Oh, shit..!"

**U**p in the crow's nest of the main mast sat Ace and watched the sky darken and the stars appear. He didn't know what was wrong with him. He had always admired Marco. The new captain was a great person and a strong leader. And a wonderful friend.

But since Ace was stuck in this female body, everything had changed. Especially since yesterday evening. When Anne had hugged Marco to warm him (this _had_ been the original plan), she didn't want to let go anymore. It felt so comfortable, so right. Her natural body temperature was higher than normal people's and Marco's was cooler. Feeling his cool presence was so reassuring.

And then all those incidences today. By Davy Jones, how should this continue? They couldn't just go for almost-kisses in dark corridors all the time. And what would happen if they accidently fell in love and he changed back to his male body?

Oh, scratch that! He wouldn't fall for his captain. "And even if so, he wouldn't fall for me. I am a man…" What should she do? She couldn't be what Marco really wanted, because it all was an illusion. A desperate laugh left her lips as she looked up into the dark sky.

At some point, Anne was kicked out of the crow's nest by the poor guy who was on the watch that night. She climbed down and started wandering around the ship. Before they had lost their main ship in the war, Ace had never spent a lot of time on the Black Moby Dick. And as he knew he could neither sleep, nor was he ready to go back to the cabin in the first place, he decided to explore his new home.

And of course Anne also went to the lower regions of the ship and promptly found his blond captain. Anne stopped a few meters away from him and watched him look at something in his hands. Carefully she stepped closer and saw the beautiful earrings. Briefly she wondered why Marco had a pair of earrings. Then Marco looked up and she forgot the earrings. Basically she forgot everything around.

Of course the phoenix had felt her presence. Marco stood up and closed the distance between them. He grabbed for her hand and placed the jewelry in it. "We don't need to go shopping." Anne searched his eyes but found nothing that helped her.

"Marco.. I…" With a small smile he placed a finger on her lips. "I bought them after we got the clothes for you. Just didn't get a chance to give them to you." Her smile made his heart ache. She was just too beautiful. His hand moved to cup her cheek and he watched her lean into the touch. Anne looked up at him. Her eyes showed fear, and something Marco couldn't really figure out.

The phoenix took a shuddering breath. "Anne… Ace." He saw the fear melt away. He picked one of the earrings from her hand and said: "This might hurt a little…" Marco placed the post at her earlobe and used Haki to prevent the fire fruit of having too much effect. Anne flinched when he pierced the metal through her flesh and again when he quickly did the same on the other ear. Carefully now, Marco closed the earrings.

"They fit you." The woman looked up at him and carefully touched the earrings. Her earlobe healed immediately around the earrings. Grabbing Marco's wrist she dragged him all the way up to his cabin, where they had a mirror. He watched her face lighting up and felt his heart skip a beat.

He stepped behind her and met her gaze in the mirror. Ace was looking back at him through Anne's eyes. The phoenix didn't mind. He bent down and pressed a kiss on her neck. "Didn't you want to have jewelry to wear with the dress?" His eyes flickered over to the dark read dress that still hung over his chair. Anne turned around.

The look in her eyes knocked the breath out of him. She casually walked over to the dress. "Close your eyes, captain." He found that he couldn't, so he turned around. A few moments later, she touched his shoulder lightly. Slowly he turned back around and looked at her. She met his gaze with an almost shy look. "You are so beautiful…"

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><p>Aaaand End of Chapter.<p>

I know.. Cliffhanger again.

They got OOC here, but I have to admit that I seriously love the feelings I got into this chapter.

Tell me what you think, please!

**Read & Review please - Thanks!**


	6. What Are You Afraid Of?

Hello Again...

I'm really worried about this chapter..

I think it is ok, but well... Tell me please, 'kay?

**Disclaimer: **Still not mine...

**Warning: **Constant confusion between Anne and Ace is fully intendet!

Enjoy!

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><p>And suddenly she was unsure again, the fear back in her eyes. „I'm sorry Marco, but I'm still Ace." The raven-haired looked sad. She stepped away from her captain and grabbed for the only loose clothes she had bought. Marco raised an eyebrow. She was just trying to slip away when he grabbed her waist, hugging her from behind. With one hand he held her close to his body, with the other he kept the door shut.<p>

"What are you afraid of?" he whispered. He felt a shiver run through Anne. A smirk, invisible for her, crossed his features. "What. Are. You. Afraid of?" His breath was cool on Anne's neck. She grabbed for the doorknob. "Anne..?" Marco leaned his weight against the door. If not burning it, Anne wouldn't get out.

"Marco, please. I am a man. Let go." A low chuckle escaped him. "I know, Ace. I don't mind." He pressed his lips on her neck once more. Then he loosened his grip and took a step back. Anne didn't move. The phoenix was still close enough to feel the warmth she radiated. He took a deep breath. "What are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid you don't realize that this is only an illusion. I am no _woman_!" Marco frowned. "What do you want me to do? I cannot magically change you back and then kiss you senseless just to make sure that you believe me." The raven-haired whirled around and stared at him wide-eyed.

Her captain closed the distance between them. Marco placed one hand at her side and locked the door to his cabin with the other. "I know that you are Ace. I can see him in your behavior, in your face and in your eyes."

Anne shyly raised a hand and touched his cheek, following his jaw line with her fingers. Marco closed his eyes, concentrating on the feeling of her soft skin against his. Anne's fingers wandered over his neck to his torso, tracing his tattoo. Carefully she continued her exploration of his body on his abs. "Anne…" he whispered. She stopped dead and looked up at him with a wary expression.

The phoenix opened his eyes and met her gaze. He took her face between his hands and bent down. Their lips almost met, he still looked her in the eyes. "Do you trust me?" "Always." She smiled and Marco lost it. He crushed his lips on hers, finally, _finally_, feeling her.

Hungrily he traced her lips with his tongue and begged for entrance. Anne didn't respond. She really wanted to but somehow this felt so strange. It felt amazing and still… The blond understood what she must feel like. She trusted him, but this was new for her. Ace had had his experience with some women on the islands, but for Anne, this was new. And maybe he was also a little over enthusiastic…

He let his hands wander away from her cheeks and instead stroke along her sides. The soft fabric under his fingers nothing compared to her skin. His lips placed butterfly kisses on her cheek and temple. In the need of feeling her skin again, he traced his hands along her naked arms and shoulder.

Softly he placed his right hand around her waist, holding her closer. Compared to his own, always-cool body, she felt incredibly warm. A low sigh escaped him when he buried his face in her hair, breathing in the smell of fire and soap and the sea. He didn't want to move. He had wanted more, so much more. But now standing here, holding her close felt like everything he would ever need.

Carefully Anne turned her head and placed a gentle kiss on his shoulder. She placed one hand on his arm, while she let the other wander over his body until it reached his sash. Then she let her lips wander, placing small pecks along his neck. Marco tilted his head to give her better access.

He had his eyes closed, feeling, hearing, _sensing_ the woman in his arms. Standing on her toes, she reached his ear and licked along his earlobe before gently biting it. He sucked in his breath, not really ready to give away his week spot so easily. When he felt Anne smiling against his neck, he knew it was too late anyway. And when she focused her efforts on his earlobe he had to grit his teeth to prevent any more sound from escaping his lips.

Anne was gentle, careful. And Marco felt his last doubts melt away. Who cared what her name was. Or how he looked like now. All the phoenix wanted was to be able to hold this person and feel the heat the other radiated. Nothing less and nothing more.

She seemed to have some different plans, though. Bringing a little more distance between them, her hands started exploring his body while she placed kisses along his collarbone. And while he tried his best to keep his control, she was apparently on the mission to make him lose the very same.

At some point, Marco couldn't take it any longer. He grabbed her hands and pinned them beside her head. "You're playing a dangerous game…" She just smiled at him while he brought his lips down to meat hers.

This time she parted them and met his tongue with her own. Forcing himself to be gentle and careful and not too demanding, Marco deepened the kiss. He grabbed her two hands with one of his and let the other wander to her side and from there to her back. Carefully he grabbed the lace that held her dress in place and pulled. Slowly he loosened the fabric around her body.

When Anne yelped and broke the kiss, Marco had already snuck a hand under the loose material. She looked at him with a mixture of anger, surprise and mischief. He answered with a gentle smile, opening her dress completely. If he would let go of the fabric now, Anne would be standing there half naked.

Marco let go of her hands and bent down. "This is the end. I'll let go and turn around now. If you want this to stop here, fasten the lace and we will continue it another time. Or never. You decide." And he really let go.

The phoenix had turned around before the dress could slip even an inch. He took two steps and came to a stop at the foot of his bed. He heard fabric rustle, then soft footsteps. His heartbeat sped up when he realized that they were coming in his direction. He felt the heat of her body.

He shivered when her lips touched her neck. Her hands caressed his back, slowly wandering down until reaching his sash. She was surprisingly fast in loosening the fabric. Anne threw it in a corner. All the while Marco stood still, not moving an inch.

Anne pressed her body close to his and he felt her skin touch his. She was still wearing her bra. She hugged him from behind, hands placed at the button of his pants. Marco blushed. First she'd been so shy and now? Well, she's Ace after all, a low voice in his head whispered.

He felt his body react to the situation, felt her hands casually open his pants, accidently brushing over the steady growing bulge. A suppressed moan left his lips. He heard Anne chuckle, the soft vibration of her body all too clear against his. She traced the rim of his boxers almost touching him again. Almost!

Anne stood on her toes whispering in his ears. "And now that I have not ran away. What are you going to do with me now?" Marco took a shuddering breath. He closed his eyes and turned around in her arms. He raised a hand and felt for her bra. With a little difficulty he opened it, letting the clothing drop to the floor. He heard her laugh softly.

"Are you afraid, captain?" He shook his head and bent down. He kissed his way along her jaw line to her lips. He captured them in a sensual kiss, his hands almost shyly touching her breast. Marco felt her arch into his touch. They broke apart, his eyes still closed. And suddenly she was unsure again, the phoenix felt it. "What's wrong?" His eyes still closed.

"Why don't you look at me?" He opened his eyes, focused on her face. A tiny little blush covered his cheeks. He smiled. "Look at me. All of me… I didn't look at your feminine body, we hardly touched. Do you believe me now? It's not about Anne. Or Ace. Or whatever your name is. It's only about you." The grin on her face was so _Ace_!

She pushed him backwards onto the bed and crawled over him.

Marco watched her every move. Her body heat washed over him and forced his eyes shut once more. He wanted her to make the decision. Anne should decide what they were going to do. He listened to the soft rustle of the bed sheets. He felt her presence.

When her lips touched his, his whole body tensed for a second. It wasn't like this was his first time, by far not. But Anne was so different from any woman he had slept with so far that Marco felt oddly insecure. He lifted a hand up to cup her cheek, holding her head in place.

Carefully he deepened the kiss, pulling her body closer to his with his free hand. He felt her naked skin on his and also felt how his body reacted to it. A soft sigh escaped his lips when they parted for a second. Anne looked at him. Marco smiled up at her and turned them around. Lying atop of her, he placed butterfly kisses on her face and neck. One of his hands wandered over her breast, his thumb caressing the soft nipple. Anne's long fingers wandered over his body, tracing his muscles, making him shiver.

He kissed her neck until he found a spot he liked and started sucking. It was illusionary to believe that the mark would last. The woman was fire after all. But he still wanted to mark her, even if it would only last for a few minutes. Marco let his hand wander into her thong, briefly wondering why she had bought such a piece. Then his mind was utterly distracted by the sweet sounds that Anne made under his touch.

When she snuck a fragile hand into his pants, he took in a shuddering breath. Making some careful moves he assured his balance, even if his control should falter. His own hand came to a halt when his mind was too distracted by Anne's touch. He arched into her touch, temporarily forgetting the world around him.

In his inattentive state, the woman managed to switch their positions. Sitting atop her captain once more, she kissed her way down from his collarbone to his navel. Whenever she touched the bulged in his pants his breath got more uneven. She smirked up at him.

Marco's heard skipped a beat only to come back with a much faster pace. She wouldn't… Would she? When he felt her hand on his boxers, the phoenix knew that she indeed would. Her warm fingers closed around his throbbing cock. He was breathing heavily. Marco dared looking down to her face. Anne met his gaze with a typical Ace grin then she half closed her eyes, her head dipping down. When her hot lips closed around his aching shaft, he bit his bottom lip to avoid any sound from escaping.

She started sucking, lightly first, and all his effort of silencing himself were wasted. Anne let his cock slip from her mouth only to wrap one hand around it. While moving her hand up and down so incredibly slowly, she licked around the tip, sucking more forcefully now. Marco's breath was ragged, more moans escaping him. This felt so…

Anne's hot lips combined with Ace's knowledge of the male anatomy resulted in a torture the phoenix almost couldn't bear. "Anne… Stop. I.." She let go and he immediately felt disappointment wash over him. He knew it was his own fault, though. His disappointment vanished when she took him back in, sucking hard. Going over to deep throating him, she shred his self-control to pieces. He came with a guttural cry, muffling the sound with the back of his hand.

Releasing him partially she swallowed the salty liquid, licking him clean. Marco's breathing was still uneven. He kept his eyes closed, fully enjoying the after orgasm. But the devilish woman didn't give him the time to catch his breath. Placing butterfly kisses on his hips and tights she slowly got him hard again.

When satisfied with the result she came up to capture his lips once more. When did he hand the lead over to her? He couldn't remember. He couldn't bring himself to care. He placed his hands at her hip, feeling the fabric that still lingered there.

With a swift move he rolled them over once more. Anne looked up at him, flustered but smiling. Marco kissed his way down to her hips, sucking lightly on the hipbone, while removing the last piece of closing. He felt her tense below his hands and looked up at her.

Leaning on his knees and elbows he brought his face back to hers, meeting her unsure gaze. "Do you want me to stop..?" He didn't believe that he could, even if she begged him. But he knew that he somehow would. Never was he going to hurt her. He placed a soft kiss in the corner of her lips and waited.

Anne's eyes focused on his. But it was Ace who looked at him when the woman spoke: "I… You…" She stopped. Marco smiled. "You at a loss of words… I doubt anyone else has ever managed this." Anne snapped for his lips. He brought them out of reach, leaning further back until he was sitting on the bed, Anne kneeling before him.

When she paused a little, he captured her lips with his. Kissing her, he turned around and lay back down, Anne still on top. If she didn't want this, then he would endure it. He wasn't sure how, but he would. She broke the kiss and turned her attention to his earlobe. He should have known that she didn't forget about this.

When she bit his ear a new wave of arousal washed over him and he started trembling below her. She took a shuddering breath, still looking so damn unsure. He rolled them over once more, pinning her to the bed. "Anne. If you don't want this, tell me. I won't do anything you don't want."

How could he? She was the most precious thing he had. Though he didn't really have her. He didn't know if she felt anything similar for him as he did for her. And right now was not the time to think about it.

Anne had moved a small hand to his hips, pulling him close. He positioned himself at her entrance. Looking her in the eye once more, he carefully pushed in. But she was Ace, remember? And Ace wasn't particularly famous for his patience. Wrapping a leg around his body, she forced him closer.

His suck in his breath when he buried himself in her. Closing his eyes, Marco steadied his fast crumbling control. He wanted this to be something special. For both of them. Slowly he started to move. He could hear Anne's breath become uneven. She moaned, a suppressed sound, as if she didn't want him to know how much she enjoyed this.

With slow and deep thrusts Marco made sure that all attempts of silence were null. Soon Anne was panting below him, sweat covering her body. Moans and soft cries escaped her. Her eyes were closed but flew open when the phoenix picked up the pace.

Marco knew he couldn't last much longer. Every sound from her lips drove him closer to the edge. Then he felt her tense. She moaned his name, shivering under the orgasm. A few more thrusts and he followed her.

Marco rolled over, coming to lie beside her. Slowly his breath evened and he managed to see clear again. Lying on his side, he watched her recover. He brushed a strand of her raven black hair out of her eyes. Then he put the blanket over them.

While doing so, he noticed to his surprise that the hickey he had left on her neck was still there. Shrugging it off, he took her in a warm embrace and closed his eyes.

Anne turned her head to face him. A light blush covered his cheeks. He had his eyes closed, a small smile playing at his lips. She raised her hand and traced a finger over his cheek. Remembering his words from earlier that night, she began to wonder.

Did he really not mind that she was a man? Marco and Ace had always had a good relationship. The phoenix, together with Thatch, had taken care of the fire fist from the first day. Ignoring his rather ridiculous attempts to take Whitebeards life, they had held out a hand to him. They were family.

And now..? What was Marco to him now? Sure they were no normal nakama anymore. They were captain and commander. But that wasn't all. Anne was pretty sure that Marco didn't sleep with the other commanders…

Slowly she drifted to sleep, deciding that defining their relationship status could wait until tomorrow.

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><p>Well my dears, let me know what you think.<p>

Really like the Marco in this one. He's kinda cure.

Not much to say, really.. It's just sex, right?

**Read & Review please - Thanks!**


	7. Of Scarfs And Haki Training

And I am back with the last chapter of 'Always'

**Disclaimer:** All Oda's

**Warning: **The constant confusion between Anne and Ace is fully intended

Enjoy!

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><p>The next morning came sooner than Anne had expected. And it came in the form of Reji nearly knocking the door to Marco's cabin down. "Damn it, captain. Open the door!" Anne rubbed her eyes and sat up. Looking beside her, she saw that Marco was still asleep. As she was technically his second in command, she decided that she could let him sleep.<p>

"Reji. Stop that… Marco's still asleep. Gimme a minute." The knocking stopped. Anne was sure that Reji had started pacing in front of the door. She looked around the room, grabbing fresh underwear from one of her bags, shoving the old one under the bed. She would collect it later. She was still fastening the lace of her dress when she opened the door and stepped out of the cabin.

Anne was pretty sure that her hair was a mess, but that couldn't explain the shocked look on Reji's face. "What's wrong?" Still rather shocked, her second in command pointed at her neck. Placing a hand there, she looked at him questioning. "I'd advice you get a scarf or something…" A memory from the night flashed up before her inner eye and it downed on her, what the issue might be. If she was right, she could easily get rid of it. But somehow she didn't want to. She leaned back into the room, grabbing a scarf from a chair and wrapped it around her neck. "Better..?"

Reji nodded and lead her up the stairs to the main deck. Half the crew was standing on one side of the deck, staring intensely at a dark point on the horizon. "A ship?" Anne asked, walking over to a former Spade pirate. Grabbing the spyglass her nakama held in hands, she aimed it what turned out to be a Marine ship.

"Ok, now we do need to wake the captain. Everyone, ready for battle. Haki users to the front, devil fruits in the second row." She turned to Reji and handed him the spyglass. "I go and get Marco." With this she run below deck and back to the cabin. She opened the door, slamming it against the wall. "Marco!"

The phoenix sat up and looked at her with a slightly disorientated look. "What's the thing with the scarf, yoi?" For a moment, Anne didn't know what the hell her captain was talking about. Then she realized and shook her head. "Doesn't matter now. There's a Marine ship at the horizon, coming in our direction at full speed."

Minutes later Marco was dressed and hasted along the corridor. He stepped onto the main deck, Anne close behind him. The crew had done as Anne had asked them and stood at the railing, ready for battle. The phoenix raised an eyebrow at the commander. She just shrugged. The captain then let his eyes wander briefly over the crew and nodded approvingly.

Reji handed him the spyglass. In the few minutes Anne had needed to bring Marco above deck, the ship had gotten closer and was now clearly recognizable as a Marine galore. The captain raised an eyebrow and passed the spyglass to his first commander. Slightly confused, Anne took it and aimed for the ship once more.

A deep frown showed on her face, feeling rather unsure. "This is Grandpa's ship... right?" Marco nodded. Looking up and down her feminine body, Anne sighed. May Davy Jones have mercy on her. "He can't know I'm alive, right? So what does he want?" The blond had no idea so he just shrugged.

Though Marco was rather sure the old Marine hero wouldn't do anything to harm them, he kept his crew on high alert. They were still out of reach and therefore Marco and Anne decided to go and grab a coffee and something to eat. Fighting was always easier with a full stomach. And besides waiting, there was nothing they could do at the moment.

Standing in the kitchen, Marco turned to his first commander. "So Anne, and now please explain me why you're wearing a scarf?" The woman tugged the scarf down and showed Marco the hickey. "Guess…" She murmured, a soft blush on her cheeks. He raised an eyebrow. "You could get rid of it easily, yoi. We both know that." The blush deepened and Anne stared at her cup.

"I… kind of don't want to." Marco crossed the distance between them and put his free hand around her waist. "I can easily get you another one tonight. But I guess Garp's gonna be difficult enough to handle without you showing obvious signs of what happened yesterday." Hesitantly she took off the scarf. A small flame erupted along her neck and the hickey was gone.

Marco placed a soft kiss on her temple. "Let's go back to the main deck. We should be up there when Garp and his crew get within reach. I doubt that he will attack us. But you never know." He put his empty cup down and left the kitchen. Anne followed him hesitantly. If there was one man she feared to face in her new form, then it was her grandfather.

Anne grabbed for Marco's hand while they walked along the corridor. The blond looked at their entangled fingers. He gave them a soft squeeze and opened the door. Izou turned around, analyzing the picture he saw within the blink of an eye. His eyes wandered over their locked hands to Anne's ears and smirked.

Marco rolled his eyes, watching the crew. They were still ready for attack, their backs tensed. Walking up to the railing, the blond never let go of Anne's slender hand. The two of them just stood there and waited. Soon Garp was clearly visible on the bow. Marco felt Anne tense beside him.

Finally letting go, Marco raised his voice and shouted across the water between them. "Garp! What do you want?" The old hero didn't answer for a while. Marco was pretty sure the Marine was holding a spyglass. He could see the sun reflecting on the glass. Gritting his teeth, he pulled Anne a little closer. Would Garp recognize her? He knew Rouge…

"I wondered what happened with my grandsons. I know what Luffy did. I'm curious what you did with Ace. Have you… Have you buried him?" Anne gasped at this. Marco guessed that she had probably never thought about her family and all her friends out there. They all believed Ace was dead.

"Promise me you'll not attack my ship and I'll tell you about Ace, yoi." Marco didn't need to scream anymore. The Marine galore had crossed some more distance and was now close enough for them to make out Garp's laughing face. "So you're the new captain of this crew now? That will push your bounty some more." Marco snorted. As if he would give a shit about his bounty.

"Do I need to get rid of your cute little boat or can we have a decent discussion without it?" Garp smirked. "We'll not attack you. Happy now?" Marco gave the Marine an evil grin. "Jump over." He shooed the some of the crew out of the way and waited. Obviously Garp wanted something from him, so Marco would be the one to set the rules.

He heard the Marine hero grumble but he jumped nevertheless. Marco smirked and took a step to the side. Garp had of course aimed to land on the spot where the captain stood with his first division commander. "So, now tell me. Where can I find the grave?"

"No need for it, Grandpa. Except if you plan to visit Whitebeard, and I somehow dare to doubt that." Garp's head flew around and he faced Anne. He stared at her wide-eyes, searching her face and appearance for anything he knew. "Ace?" "Alive and kicking…" The old man's eyes wandered over the female body and then back to Marco. "You got a little disagreement with Ivankov?"

Marco smirked and shook his head. Garp stepped over to the fist division commander, pulling her in a crushing embrace. He'd never been one to show his loving feelings to people, and certainly not to his grandson. But seeing Ace here, alive… His body trembled under the suppressed sobs.

"Hey old man, calm down. And let go of me, otherwise I'll soon be dead nevertheless." With a snarl his grandfather released her and regained his normal behavior. "I'll leave you all in peace this time. The next time our paths cross, I'll get your head." He pointed a finger at Marco, looking really serious.

"Whatever Garp. As you're already here, mind spreading the news that I'm captain of this crew and Gol D. Anne is leading the first division? Thanks." The smirk on Marco's face was as evil as the one on Garps, the two of them measuring each other with cold eyes.

The phoenix hadn't forgotten who had prevented him from reaching Ace back in Marine Fort. He wouldn't forgive Garp. No matter how much he liked to play Mr. Nice Guy, no matter how close or not he was to Ace. Marco would never forgive the Marine for what he'd done. Davy Jones knew what would have happened if they had reached their nakama earlier.

"Leave now, Garp." He felt Anne's worried look in his back, but ignored her. He was the captain of this ship and he wouldn't tolerate the Marine on it any longer. He had granted a look on Anne because he wanted the older man to know that his grandson was alive and save. But that was also the end of the line. The phoenix didn't want anything to do with the Marin, now even less than before. Anne took a quick step in Garp's direction but Marco held out an arm, shooting her a warning glance. She sighed and gave him a barley visible nod. "Leave."

The old Marine nodded and turned around. "I'm glad you're alive, _Anne_." And with this he jumped back to his galore. Only day's later the new wanted posters were out. Ace's with new photo and name, Marco's with higher bounty. But for the moment, the captain's biggest worry was much more critical. It had a name and that name was Izou.

The feminine looking commander stepped forth while Marco's nakama dispersed over the boat, going back to their daily routine. Izou came to a halt in front of Anne and poked at her earlobes. "So he finally gave them to you." Anne's eyes flickered over to her captain and back to her fellow commander. "You knew?" "Found out by accident. Better keep a good hold on our captain or I might come around to get him."

"Izou!" Marco stepped in, hissing at his fifteenth commander. The other just laughed and walked back to Haruta to discuss the inventory list. The phoenix hid his face in his hand and sighed. Then he heard Anne chuckle and look at her. "Get used to it… Though I guess most people will be jealous of _you_. If I'm not mistaken a few of our nakama have a certain interest in Anne."

Marco looked at her with a slightly unsure look. "Do they have a reason for being jealous?" Anne tilted her head and laughed. "Why not?" Hesitantly he took a step closer to her, reaching out his fingers, lightly touching her arm. Meeting her eyes he searched for something that would answer his questions.

She smiled up at him, the playful glint in her eyes giving away Ace's personality within the female body. "We're pirates. We usually just take what we want and don't give it back again. So why the question?" He smirked.

"Because a certain commander just showed that she is not playing by my rules?" Her smile changed to a lopsided smirk. "Sorry. I know I shouldn't have done this. But he's my stupid Grandpa and deep down I know that he loves me, even as the pirate I became. It wasn't easy for him, you know."

Marco shook his head, a shadow lying on his features. "If any of us would have been in his position we would have done everything to protect you. We put everything we had and were on the table to save you. He didn't." Anne knew he was right. But she also knew Garp. It was ok for her, somehow. "He stayed loyal to the person he is and to what he believes is the right thing. He put everything on the table too. He just chose another path."

The phoenix stepped over to the railing, watching the Marine ship disappear slowly on the horizon. "Where are we now, Anne." He didn't really ask her. He formulated the question, speaking it out loud, letting the wind and water hear it. The fact that she was standing beside him could have been a coincidence.

"I love you." She said with a shrug, invisible to him, as he had his back turned to her. Anne (or rather Ace) knew that beating around the bush was nothing that would make any of them feel better. And it would only lead to misunderstandings. Marco stared at the sea some more, then he turned around to face her again.

The wind tugged at her hair and dress, sunlight let her eyes shine. A small smile played at her lips and for a moment she looked so much like Rouge that the phoenix almost forgot who was standing in front of him. "You look so much like her…"

Anne just waited. She had to, because this was probably her only chance to find out something about her mother. Marco walked over to the stairs that lead to the cabins and disappeared. Frowning she looked around and checked if all her nakamas were ok before she followed him. Upon disappearing downstairs she gave Reji a sign to make sure that really everything was ok.

Marco waited in his cabin. He didn't really know if he wanted to share this story with Anne, but somehow he felt that he had to. And when the raven-haired woman stepped into the room and closed the door behind her, he started.

He told her about the day Rouge had come to the Moby Dick, told her about all that happened before she left and all that happened after. "I never knew why she wanted me to fly to this island." The phoenix stared into nothingness, remembering the strange events from the past. "It was the only way to find an island without leaving a trace the Marine could connect with Roger. It gave her time to cover for me." Marco stared at his first division commander wide-eyed. "Grandpa told me."

And suddenly everything fell in place and Marco felt how something in him fit again. He had always mused if he could have saved her if he had brought her somewhere else. Only now he realized that she had asked him to do the only thing that could save her child from the _Absolute__Justice_that ruled the world they were living in. "Thank you, Anne." The woman smiled up at him. "Always." Then someone from the corridor shouted Anne's name and captain and commander somehow lost sight of each other for the rest of the day.

When Marco stepped into the kitchen in the evening, Anne was engaged in a vivid discussion with Reji and three other members of the first division. Some former Spade pirates had gathered around them, as well as a few members of other division, enjoying the spectacle. "Like hell I'll take them off. It's not like I could get hurt if someone rips them out." The phoenix recognized Anne's snarl out of the noise, a tone only Ace had edging at her words. "Commander, if you plan to participate in the Haki training, those will be out, or you can find someone else to help you with your underdeveloped abilities." That was Reji. Marco slowly began to understand what the point was and chose to ignore it. He would discuss this later.

Yawning he sat down at the table of the fifteenth division, looking at Izou. "How long has this been going on already?" The feminine looking commander laughed. "Several minutes. She doesn't want to take the earrings out for training and Reji will not give her any training if she keeps them in." Marco nodded.

"How's the inventory?" "Perfectly fine. We can last a few more weeks. We'll soon be short on booze but we could technically have an extra boat for it and it wouldn't last long enough anyway, so…" The phoenix laughed and finished his dinner. "I'm up in the crow's nest until midnight, just if she remembers me and would like to know where I am."

With this he left and stepped out to the main deck. Climbing the rigging he smiled. Once up, he looked up at the stars and murmured. "You were right. Ace is someone special. I'm sure we'll somehow manage to go on without you. And we will get the traitor, sooner or later. Don't worry, Thatch, Oyaji. We will clean the name of Whitebeard and carry your dreams to the future."

A sad smiled lingered on his features. He missed his best friend and his father even more at the moment. He wished they could have seen how happy Ace was now. But in the end, their death wouldn't keep him from living his life and somehow find happiness. That's what Oyaji always wanted for his sons. Anne's words ghosted through his thoughts. His smile changed and now a broadly grinning captain sat in the crow's nest, glancing up at the stars.

His first division commander joined him up there a few minutes later, still slightly angry. "Will you take them out?" She snarled. "I have to, otherwise he won't teach me." Getting up, Marco stepped closer to the dark haired woman. "I'm glad you like them. " Even in the dark night he could see the blush on her face.

"I got them from you, right?" He chuckled and nodded. "Yes you did." Taking her face between his hands he leaned in to kiss her. Just before he touched her lips he murmured. "I love you. Anne. Ace. Or whatever the name. I just love _you_." It was her who crossed the remaining distance, pressing her warm lips on his.

He moved his hands to rest on her waist while she flung hers across his neck. Breaking the kiss, she leaned her head on his shoulder and stared over the everlasting ocean. "Do you think the others will accept this?" "They'll have to. But in the end I guess they will be ok as long as we are happy. Some youngsters might not be too impressed though." She laughed.

"Will you let me ride on your back again?" He smirked. As if he hadn't foreseen something like this to come up at some point. With a smile he murmured. "Always."

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><p>The End!<p>

I really loved writing this. And I got quite a thingy for Anne.

Thank you all for reading and reviewing.

I hope I'll be able to upload the fist chapter of December Fairytale on Thursday. It's Law/Kid though.. Maybe some of you will still read it.


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